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HQ 561712

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September 5, 2000

MAR-2 RR:CR:SM 561712 KSG

CATEGORY: MARKING

Emmanouil A. Chaniotakis
MITOS, Inc.
152 Brighton Street
Belmont, MA 02478

RE: Country of origin marking of imported olive oil; 19 CFR 134.46; “imported by” language

Dear Mr. Chaniotakis:

This is in response to your letter of March 31, 2000, requesting a binding ruling on the country of origin marking of imported olive oil. You submitted a copy of the product labels for our examination.

FACTS:

The imported merchandise in this case consists of olive oil from Greece being imported into the ports of Boston, New York and Philadelphia. The label on the front of the product clearly identifies the product as a product of Greece. The label that wraps around the side of the product and the back label includes a reference to “Imported by Mitos, Inc. Belmont, MA” and a country of origin marking just below it in the same size lettering stating “Product of Greece.”

ISSUE:

Whether the proposed marking of the imported olive oil as described above satisfies the country of origin marking requirements set forth in 19 U.S.C. 1304.

LAW AND ANALYSIS:

Section 304 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1304), as amended, provides that unless excepted, every article of foreign origin imported into the U.S. shall be marked in a conspicuous place as legibly, indelibly, and permanently as the nature of the article (or its container) will permit, in such a manner as to indicate to the ultimate purchaser in the U.S. the English name of the country of origin of the article. Part 134, Customs Regulations (19 CFR

Part 134), implements the country of origin marking requirements of 19 U.S.C. 1304. Section 134.46, Customs Regulations (19 CFR 134.46), as revised by T.D. 97-72, dated August 20, 1997, provides:

In any case in which the words “United States,” or “American,” the letters “U.S.A.,” any variation of such words or letters, or the name of any city or location in the United States, or the name of any foreign country or locality other than the country or locality in which the article was manufactured or produced appear on an imported article or its container, and those words, letters or names may mislead or deceive the ultimate purchaser as to the actual country of origin of the article, there shall appear legibly and permanently in close proximity to such words, letters or name, and in at least a comparable size, the name of the country of origin preceded by “Made in,” “Product of,” or other words of similar meaning.

Section 134.46 provides that its special marking requirements are triggered only when Customs determines that the non-origin marking may mislead or deceive the ultimate purchaser as to the actual country of origin of the article. Customs has ruled that in order to satisfy the “close proximity” requirement, the country of origin marking must appear on the same sides(s) or surface(s) in which the name of the locality other than the country of origin appears. See HRL 708994, dated April 24, 1978.

In Headquarters Ruling Letter (“HRL”) 732204, dated July 18, 1989, Customs held that a beer bottle with a reference to “Imported by the Guinness Import Company Stamford, CT” did not trigger 19 CFR 134.46 because the reference was not likely to confuse or mislead ultimate purchasers as to the country of origin of the beverage in the bottle. Also see HRL 561075, dated July 22, 1998. We find that the reference to “Imported by Mitos, Inc. Belmont, MA” on the side and back of the product clearly is intended only to identify the importer in a similar manner as HRL 732204 and is not likely to mislead or deceive the ultimate purchaser with regard to the actual origin of the olive oil. Therefore, the special marking requirements of 19 CFR 134.46 are not triggered. The proposed marking satisfies the requirements of 19 U.S.C. 1304 and 19 CFR Part 134.

HOLDING:

The “Imported by Mitos, Inc. Belmont MA” reference on the label on the side and back of the imported olive oil label does not trigger the special marking requirements of 19 CFR 134.46. The proposed marking on the sample label, as described above, satisfies the requirements of 19 U.S.C. 1304.

A copy of this ruling letter should be attached to the entry documents filed at the time this merchandise is entered. If the documents have been filed without a copy, this ruling should be brought to the attention of the Customs officer handling the transaction.

Sincerely,

John Durant, Director
Commercial Rulings Division


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